Railway-switch.



N0. 832,840. PATENTBD OCT. 9, 1906. F. G. CARROLL & T. FLEMING.

RAILWAY SWITCH.

APPLIOATION FILED DEO.16. 1905.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

No. 832,840. PATENTED OCT. 9, 1906.

P. G. CARROLL & T. FLEMING.

RAILWAY SWITCH. APPLICATION FILED DEO.16, 1905.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

y 7 01 fifluM I 1 FRANK O. CARROLL, OF

PAINESVILLE, AND THOMAS FLEMING, OF

CLEVELAND, OHIO.

RAILWAY-SWITCH.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 9, 1906,

Ap ication filed December 16, 1905. Serial No. 291.991-

TO all whmn it na/y concern;

Be it known that we, FRANK O. CARROLL, residing at Painesville, in the county of Lake, and THOMAS FLEMING, residing at Cleveland, in the county of Cuyahoga, State of Ohio, citizens of the United States, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Rail- Way-Switches, of Which the following is a full,

- clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

This invention is an improvement upon the railway-switch mechanism which forms the subject-matter of our prior patent, N 0. 778,008, granted December 20, 1904; and the invention consists in the novel combination of parts shown in the drawings and hereinafter described, and pointed out definitely in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure lis a plan view of the mechanism wh n the switch is arranged for the passage of a train from the main to the side track. F ig.'2 is a plan View of the mechanism in the position which it automate ically assumes after a train has passed onto the side track and has traveled along said Side track far enough to clear any train passing on the main track; and Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional elevation from the right side of Fig. 2,

Referring to the parts by letters, A A represent the two rails of the main track.

B B represent the two rails of the side track.

E represents a bar or rail which lies just inside and normally in substantial contact with the side-track rail B, and it extends from the point at which the side-track rail B diverges from the main-track rail A a suflicient distance to enable it to act in the manner to be described.

The part a of the main-track rail A between the crossing D and the switch-point C is movable transversely, and its front end is joined to the front end of the bar E to form said switch-point O. The part b of the sidetrack rail B between the crossing D and the switch-point C is also movable, and said railsections a and b and said bar E are all rigidly connected substantially as shown so as to move in unison.

By the side of the main track and parallel thereto is a rock-shaft G, having a plurality of depending arms g, which arms are connected by suitable links, &c., with that movable structure composed of the track-sections a;

and b and the bar E. The two switch-points O O rest upon and are secured to a transversely-movable bar H, which passes under the track-rails A B, whereby said points are held down in the plane of said rails. This bar is connected, by means of a link it, with one of the arms 9 on said rock-shaft, which arm is also connected by a link y" with the crank-arm j on the bottom of the vertical standard J of the switch-stand K. Another bar H passes under the rails A and B and also under the bar E and the rail-sections a, and b, which are secured to the bar H, whereby this part of said rail-sections and bar E are also held down. A link M, connected with another one of the arms g of the rockshaft G, is connected with a plate 6, secured to the under side of the bar E, which plate extends under the side-track rall B. Another plate a is secured to the under side of said bar E and extends beneath said sidetrack rail B, and this plate is connected by a link N with another arm 9 on said rock-shaft G.

The ends of the two rail-sections a and I) extend on opposite sides of the frog-point D and diverge in the usual way. These railsections are, however, rigidly fastened together adjacent to said frog-point by a boltrod P, whose extension is pivotally connected with a lever R. This lever is pivoted upon a fixed pivotpin 1" and is movable in a horizontal plane only. The other end of said lever is pivotally connected with the link N.

The switch-stand post J is provided with the usual operating-lever T, which is adapted to be swung on a horizontal pivot t into a horizontal position above a horizontal plate 7r on the switch-stand or to swing down automatically into a vertical position when said arm comes above the notch 7c in said plate. A spring-latch U may be provided for automatically engaging with said arm to hold it down. When now it is desired to throw the switch to permit a train to pass onto the side track, this lever T is unlocked and is raised out of said notch k and the switch-stand post is turned. This rocks the rock-shaft G, which, through the instrumentalities described, causes a movement toward said rock-shaft of switch-point end of the struc ture composed of the rail-sections a and b and the bar E and a movement in the contrary direction of the end of said structure adjacent to the crossing D. WVhen'the rock-shaft moves in the direction referred to, it raises one or more weighted arms g secured thereto. A train going from the right of Fig. 1 will now be guided onto the side track. In so doing the flanges of the car-wheels pass between the bar E and the side-track rail B, and thereafter so long as any wheel-flange lies between said rail and bar E it' will hold the bar E away from said rail B and will there fore hold the switch open. The bar E is of such length that some wheel-flange is always between the bar E and rail B so long as the train is passing onto the side track and until it has gone farenough to enable a train on the main track to clear it. Therefore when the first wheel-flange of a train goes between said bar E and rail B the man who opened the switch may leave it and go about his business. When the train has passed entirely onto the side track and beyond the bar E, the weights 9 will turn the rock-shaft G, and it will move the switch structure to the position shown in Fig. 1, thereby putting the track in condition for a train to pass along the main track. when the switch structure moves to this position, the switch-stand post J will be simultaneously turned until the lever T thereon is brought above the notchk in the diskk, whereupon said lever will swing down into said notch and be locked therein,

and thereby prevent the accidental opening of the switch. It will be noticed that simultaneously with the opening of the switch there will be a movement of the rails a b at the crossingD, a movement produced through lever P and link N, which will put the crossing .into proper position to guide the wheels in the track-section a or 1) onto the maintrack rails A or B as required.

Having thus described our invention, we

I claim which normally lies close to the inner face of one of the side-track rails, mechanism connecting said rock-shaft with the switch-stand mechanism and with said movable bar, and

weighted arms secured to said rock-shaft and adapted to turn the same in the direction which closes the switch and moves said bar toward said side-track rail.

3. The combination of a railway-switch, its operating mechanism, and mechanism by which the switch is automatically closed when permitted to so move, with a long bar which normally lies close to the inner face of the outer side-track rail, a transverselymovable bar whose ends extend beneath the outer side-track rail and the outer main-track rail, which bar passes also beneath the movable switch members and said movable bar and is secured to them, and mechanism connecting said bar with the switch-closing mechanism.

4. The combination in a railway-switch, of the main-tracl rails A, A, the side-track rails B, B and the rail-sections a, b, with a movable bar E which normally lies close to the inner face of the sideetrack rail B, means rigidly connecting said bar and rail-sections a, b, switch-operating mechanism and connections between the switch-operating mechanism and the structure composed of said railsections a, b, and bar E, and the devices connected with them.

5. The combination in a railway-switch of the main rails A, A, the side-track rails B, B, and the rail-sections a, b, whose front ends carry the switchpoints, with a movable bar E which normally lies close to the inner side of the outer side-track rail B and is rigidly connected at its front end with the adjacent main-track rail-section a, close to the switchpoint at the front end thereof, a bar H secured to the under side of the connected front ends of said rail-sections a and bar E, which bar passes under the rails A and B, a switch-stand, its operating mechanism, and connections between said mechanism and the bar H, a rock-shaft mounted in bearings outside of the main-track rail A, weighted arms secured to said rock-shaft, other arms which are respectively secured one to the said switch-operating mechanism, and all of the others with the movable bar E.

6. The combination in a railway-switch of the main rails A, A, the side-track rails B, B, the rail-sections a, 6, whose front ends carry the switch-points, with a movable bar E which normally lies close to the inner side of the outer side-track rail B and is rigidly connected at its front end with the adjacent main-track rail-section a close to the switchpoint at the front end thereof, bars H, H secured to the under sides of said rail-sections, a and b and bar E, which bars pass under the rails A and B, a switch-stand, its operating mechanism and connections between said mechanism and the bar H, a rock-shaft mounted in bearings outside of the maintrack rail A, weighted arms secured to said rock-shaft, other arms which are respectively secured one to the switch-operating mechanism and all of the others to the movable bar E, the rails B and A meeting in a frog-point, and the rear end of the rail-sections a, 6 extending on the opposite side of said frogpoint, means connecting said rail-sections a, In: testimony whereof we hereunto aflix b, in front of the frog-point, a rocking lever our signatures in the presence of two wit- 1o pivoted on a vertical pivot adjacent to the nesses.

frog-point and connected with said rail-sec- FRANK C. CARROLL. 5 tions a and bin front of said frog-point, there THOMAS FLEMING.

being also a connection between said lever Witnesses: and one of the devices connecting the bar E E. B. GILoHRIsT,

with a rock-shaft arm. E. L. THURSTON. 

